


Let's Talk About Sex, Baby

by somebodywakeuphicks



Series: Joyce and Hopper Need Each Other-One Shots [5]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: El and Hopper connect, F/M, First Love, Joyce and Hopper are meant to be, Reminiscing, Sex Talk, high school is hard, sleepover
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-01-26
Packaged: 2019-03-09 15:20:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13484298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somebodywakeuphicks/pseuds/somebodywakeuphicks
Summary: El has a lot of questions about sex and relationships.The story focuses more on El and Hopper's relationship, but it's brought back to Joyce and Hopper by the end.





	Let's Talk About Sex, Baby

**Author's Note:**

> This is the fifth work of a sequence of Jopper one shots.
> 
> All stories in this series will have different ratings, so please be aware of that. They may involve different characters and POV, but they are all centered on Hopper and Joyce's relationship in some way.
> 
> *For those not old enough to remember, the title is taken from the Salt-N-Pepa song of the same name.
> 
> This fic is very dialogue-heavy. Sorry in advance! Hope you still enjoy.

 

**Fall 1985**

_El Hopper_

El stared at her paper as the words blurred together. She blinked, one tear falling onto the page. She tried to hide it and managed to keep the rest from falling. Her assignment involved writing about the ways in which a particular essay appealed to logos and pathos, and El couldn’t find the words to write what she thought.

“You want me to help you?” Will whispered.

“Mr. Byers, no talking,” their teacher scolded.

Finally, the bell rang. El packed up her belongings. She would have someone help her with the assignment over the weekend. 

El enjoyed high school well enough. She’d been attending for a little over a month, and while some classes proved challenging, she just felt happy for that bit of normalcy. She struggled the most in anything involving a lot of reading and writing, and Hopper was working on getting her an IEP for speech therapy. Truthfully, though, the classes themselves were not the hardest part. It was the fact that she never saw Mike, not even during her lunch period. She knew Hopper had asked the school to put her in classes with her friends to make her more comfortable, but they refused, saying if they made an exception for her, they would have to do it for everyone. At least she had English composition with Will and government with both Will and Max. She felt more self-conscious in her other classes, worried about what other kids would think of her speech and selective knowledge. 

El sat down to lunch with Dustin, Will, and Max. She pulled a peanut butter and jelly sandwich out of her brown bag and took a bite. Mike and Lucas shared the other lunch period, which was probably a good thing, in a way, because Lucas and Max had broken up at the beginning of the school year. They all still hung out, but things had seemed a bit awkward for awhile.

Mike asked El to be his girlfriend at the Snow Ball the previous year, even though they’d had a connection long before that. By official terms, that meant they’d been going out for almost nine months, an eternity, judging by other relationships. She didn’t understand why most relationships ended so quickly. All she knew was that she wanted to be as close to Mike as possible. 

“Check that girl out. Twelve o’clock,” Dustin said. El and Will glanced over their shoulders.

“You know you’re with a bunch of girls, right?” Max said.

“Will’s not a girl,” Dustin pointed out.

“True, but he’s not constantly horny like you. Or at least if he is, he doesn’t just share it with everyone.”

There it was. Another word El didn’t know the meaning of. Most times, she asked her friends if she didn’t understand, but other times, she felt embarrassed. This time, it was the latter.

“I can’t help that I’m a normal teenage boy,” Dustin said, throwing a chip at Max.

“Hey! Normal according to who? Will and me, who don’t give two shits, or El, the one who’s in a very serious relationship, but doesn’t kiss and tell?”

“I do give two shits, I just don’t like to talk about it,” Will mumbled. 

“Good. Cuz I don’t want to hear about it.”

 El’s mind drifted to her plans for the evening. She and Mike were going to the arcade after school, then to Mike’s house for dinner. She relaxed, knowing she’d see him in a few short hours. 

After school, El waited outside near the pickup area. When she saw Mike hurrying toward her, she beamed. He threw his arm around her, and her heart soared. “I missed you,” she told him.

“I missed you, too. Sucks we don’t have classes together. Maybe next semester.” They walked over to the bike rack, and El hopped on the back of Mike’s bike, just like she’d always done, before they headed to the arcade.

After spending the afternoon playing video games and eating dinner with the Wheeler family, Mike and El found themselves in the basement flipping through magazines. “Hopper would not like this.” She giggled.

“Like what?”

“You and me. Alone.”

“Why’s that?” Mike said, scooting closer toward El and putting an arm around her.

“He does not like me to kiss.”

Mike leaned in toward El, kissing her softly. He stroked her hair before moving down to kiss her neck. A warmth grew in El’s belly, her heart flip-flopping. She didn’t understand it, but she knew she really liked kissing. 

All of a sudden, Mike looked at her seriously. “Can I tell you something?”

“Yes,” El answered.

“Ithakiluvew.”

El furrowed her eyebrows, her lips quirking upward. “What?”

He took a deep breath. “I think…I love you.”

El’s brown eyes turned to saucers. She knew those words held a lot of meaning. She’d experienced a fatherly love with Hopper, the love of friendship, and now, romantic love. Maybe that’s what the warmth in her belly was all about. “I love you, too,” she said.

Mike blushed, a shy smile appearing on his face. “Really?”

“Really.”

Mike snuggled his head into El’s shoulder and held her hand. “What time is Hopper picking you up?”

“Nine.”

“I was going to suggest we pop popcorn and watch a movie, but it’s already eight.”

“We can watch TV,” El said. “But can we kiss more, first?”

Hopper picked El up from the Wheeler’s an hour later. As the pair drove toward the cabin, Hopper turned toward El. “Hey, I wanna ask you something. How would you feel if we, I dunno, maybe started having sleepovers at the Byers’ sometimes? Not all the time, but like once a week. Would that be okay with you?”

El studied Hopper’s face. “Why?”

Hopper blew out a gust of air. “Shit, I know I need to have this talk with you at some point, but I don’t even know how to start. Lemme think about it for a bit, and I’ll get back to you. So what did you do all evening?”

“The arcade. Dinner. Magazines,” El answered. 

“Sounds fun.”

“Mike said he loves me.”

Hopper slammed on the breaks, sending he and El lurching forward against their seatbelts. “ _What_?”

El frowned. “Is it wrong?”

Hopper sighed. “No, it’s not wrong. It just means I should’ve had this talk with you a long time ago. Hey, how ‘bout this? Tomorrow, just you and me. We’ll go out to breakfast. Maybe we’ll even go to Indy and go clothes shopping or something. We can talk on the way.”

“Okay.”

Hopper relaxed and began driving again before snapping his head toward her once more. “Hold up. You haven’t had sex yet, have you?”

“No.”

“Thank god. Wait, what _do_ you know about sex?”

“I’ve heard the word. Kids at school."

Hopper groaned. "I’m sure you have. Yeah, shoulda done this a long time ago.”

***  

_Jim Hopper_

 

Hopper would be lying if he said he wasn’t nervous. Terrified, even. He and El had a nice breakfast at one of the diners in town before heading to Indy for some much-needed clothes shopping. They’d been on the road for about ten minutes before El spoke up. 

“Are we going to talk?”

Hopper cocked a smile. “Yeah, I suppose we should, huh? How long ago was it you got your…period thing? It was about a year and a half ago, right? When you were hiding out?”

“Yes.”

Hopper chuckled. “I definitely didn’t handle that as well as I could’ve. But we made it through. I didn’t really explain everything behind the _why_ , though. So when you get to a certain age, you start your, um, period, because it signals that you can have babies. I think I told you that part.”

“Yes. And you said don’t worry.”

“Right, because I didn’t want you to be afraid you’d have a baby. I said there was more to it. I also told you other things would, or maybe already started changing.”

“Yes.”

“Now we’re to the part about the, uh, what makes babies…happen. So, you know how boys and girls, men and women, are different?”

“Boys do not have periods. Girls have breasts. Girls have babies. Girls have vaginas. Boys have…uh…”

“Penises,” Hopper answered.

“Yes. That.”

“Well, a big reason for those parts is to have sex.” He looked at El, waiting to see if she’d say anything. She didn’t. “So anyway, men and women have sex when they are _ready_. Strong emphasis on the _ready_. They do it to make babies, or to feel close to the person they’re dating or married to, or just because it feels good. Does that make sense?”

El frowned a little, pulling her knees up to her chest. “No.”

“What doesn’t make sense?”

“How do you…have it?”

“Oh, right. That.” So Hopper went on to explain the mechanics of sex to his fourteen-year-old daughter. The more he explained, the more he relaxed. He realized El didn’t find it weird, and he didn’t want to project those feelings onto her. Still, as he talked, he began to realize that he might not have all the answers she needed. 

“What is it like?” One of those questions he couldn’t totally answer for her. And he told her that. 

“If you do not want a baby, how do you not have one?” Again, Hopper had some information to give her, but even he wasn’t sure of all the details of female birth control.

“When am I ready?”

“Well, El…” Hopper said. “It’s really up to you. In all honesty, I think fourteen’s too young. I believe it’s important to be mature enough, and that includes understanding birth control and being able to handle your emotions. And also being comfortable saying no. I can’t emphasize that enough. You _never_ have to do anything you don’t want to. Even if it’s Mike asking you to do something. You can always— _always—_ call me if you’re in trouble.”

“I understand,” El said. “When did you have sex?”

“For the first time?” Hopper asked. “Sixteen. I could drive at that point, which made it a whole lot easier.”

“Are you glad?”

“Um, I don’t regret it. But, you know, in retrospect, it wasn’t that great. It gets a lot better the older you get. You learn more. Understand what you like better.”

El nodded, and Hopper could tell that a thousand thoughts were running through her brain. She stared out the window, watching the passing scenery for a good several minutes before turning back to him. “I am not ready,” she said.

Hopper breathed out a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank _god_.”

“I like to kiss, but I do not want sex now. Maybe if I am a little older.”

“I agree with that sentiment. And I just want you to know that, even if you feel weird about something, you can always talk to me. Or Joyce, if you don’t want to talk to me. We’re always here for you. Any questions at all.”

“What is horny?” El asked.

Hopper choked. “Where did you hear that word?”

“School.”

“I knew there was a reason I seriously considered homeschooling you.” He ruffled her hair, smiling. “Horny’s just a somewhat vulgar word to say you want sex.”

“Oh. What is vulgar?”

“Kind of distasteful.”

“What is dis—”

“Not a very nice word. To use in public, anyway.” 

El thought for a moment. “Is that why you want a sleepover? With Joyce?”

Hopper’s face reddened, but he did say she could ask him _anything_.

“Well, yeah, I guess so, kid. Joyce and I are adults, and we’re dating, and we care about each other very much.”

“Love?”

“We’re not there yet, sweetheart.”

“Are you sure?” El asked. 

“Okay, enough interrogation. Another thing, it’s generally not polite to talk about other people having sex, m’kay?”

“I understand.”

“Good. One more thing. I think you should talk to Joyce about some of this stuff. She’d be able to answer some questions better than I could, just because she’s a woman. Is that something you’d like?”

“Yes,” El answered.

“Okay. I’ll tell her.” Hopper glanced at El, a warm smile forming on his face. His parents were never this open with him about sex and relationships, and he was glad he could help break that cycle. He wanted El to be comfortable talking to him. He still _definitely_ didn’t like to think about this in relation to El, but he’d rather that than have her keep secrets and even possibly get hurt, afraid to tell him. No, this was better for sure.

_***_

Hopper relaxed next to Joyce in her bed, catching his breath as he kissed her sweaty shoulder, tucking her hair behind her ear. “You remember when we were fourteen?” he murmured. “The day we met?”

“How could I forget? My dad was piss drunk and taking it out on me, so I swiped a couple of his cigarettes and hopped on my bike, heading to Hawkins High. I didn’t realize football practice went that late. I thought I’d be alone. But then you walked by as I tried to hide out under the bleachers.”

“Getting ready to go home.”

“You said _hey_. And I said _hey._ And then you walked over. I asked some stupid question about football.”

“You clearly had no idea what you were talking about.”

“Nope,” Joyce agreed. “Then you asked me if you could bum a cigarette. Luckily, I had two.”

Hopper’s eyes lit up as everything flooded back. “I remember all the girls, trying to impress the boys in their skirts and tight sweaters. But you wore these baggy jeans and button ups.” He laughed. “You were a mystery to me. I couldn’t get enough.”

“Part of it was that I couldn’t afford anything else. Oh, remember our first kiss?” Joyce asked, wrapping her arm around Hopper’s as she watched his face. 

“Yep. Bleachers again. I just went for it, and you pulled back, looking horrified—”

“But really, I felt like I could just float away. We were inseparable after that. Holding hands whenever we could. Kissing. I fell hard. But then summer came. We didn’t see each other. You went away with your family, and when you came back…”

“I know. I’m sorry,” Hopper said. 

“My first broken heart.”

“I was a jerk.”

“You were just playing the part. Like everyone else. And making the Varsity team was a big deal. You’d gotten taller. Broadened a bit. You had new friends. All of a sudden, all the girls wanted you.”

“Yeah, but I shouldn’t have been an asshole to you.”

Joyce pursed her lips, remembering the feeling of being dumped by Jim Hopper. 

“But then you got your turn.”

Joyce huffed. “Yeah, my senior year. Suddenly, I was this—”

“You were hot.”

“Thanks, well, I saved up money for my own clothes, you know? I had a job at that point.”

“And you, uh, filled out pretty nicely, too.”

“Oh, is _that_ what all the guys noticed about me? I had _no_ idea!” Joyce quipped. 

“Lonnie definitely noticed.”

“Don’t mention that asshole’s name in our bed.”

“ _Our_ bed, hm?” Hopper grabbed Joyce around the waist, throwing sloppy kisses all over her body and making her squeal. 

“You’re going to wake the kids! They don’t need to be traumatized, Hop.”

“So how did your talk with El go?” Hopper asked, changing the subject slightly.

“Really well, I think. We had some good girl talk. Bonded a bit.”

“Great. I’m so glad.” Hopper paused for a minute. “You know, if Mike ever treats El the way I treated you—”

“Oh, he won’t be allowed at my house ever again. I don’t care if he’s Will’s best friend.”

Hopper grinned, pulling Joyce in close. He didn’t think she realized it, the way she spoke of El, like only a mother would…

He glanced over to find Joyce snoring softly. _Yep_ , he thought. _Seems about right._ It was as if sleeping next to one another allowed them to finally get the rest they needed without having to worry so much. Hopper adjusted his pillow, trying not to disturb Joyce, and closed his eyes to go to sleep.


End file.
